


You’re Just Another Part of Me

by protect_rosie



Series: let's prove them wrong [7]
Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Based on a Tumblr Post, Declarations Of Love, Established Relationship, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Non-Chronological, Non-Linear Narrative, neither of them are hockey players, towards the end though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-31
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-04-28 02:59:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5075143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/protect_rosie/pseuds/protect_rosie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jamie and Tyler say “I love you” to each other 100 different ways.</p>
            </blockquote>





	You’re Just Another Part of Me

**Author's Note:**

> if you found this by searching your name, please click the back arrow or the ‘x’ on the top right corner and you should be good. that being said **this is a work of fiction, therefore not true at all, and it should never be considered so.**
> 
> here’s a **[link to the awesome mix](http://8tracks.com/lightynight/you-re-just-another-part-of-me)** that the awesome [**leaveamessageatthebeep** (on tumblr)](http://leaveamessageatthebeep.tumblr.com/) made.
> 
> it’s finally complete! never in my life had I written more than 6k words in one go, much less for a challenge. this was very fun to write, albeit stressful. at the beginning, I wasn’t planning on writing this 100 ways to say “I love you” thing, was planning to write the obligatory _I love you but you’ve put me through so much shit, but now I have to watch you get married to someone else_ fic. I didn’t have much planned out for that so it was illogical for me to try to wrangle something for a project this big. in the possible near future, I might write that. there are so many other things I want to work on, but I haven’t had the inspiration. hopefully some will hit me soon and I’ll be able to deliver something of this length again soon. 
> 
> there are certain things that I wrote about that may not seem very realistic, but for the sake of the story, I wrote them anyway. 
> 
> there are certain things in the endnotes that might spoil you if you read them before actually reading the story. so don't read them before the story unless you want to spoil yourself. they're just there to explain some things that might not have been so clear. 
> 
> title from Michael Jackson’s _Another Part of Me_.
> 
> written for the Hockey Big Bang challenge 2015. [link to the mix](http://8tracks.com/lightynight/you-re-just-another-part-of-me) by [leaveamessageatthebeep](http://leaveamessageatthebeep.tumblr.com/).
> 
> I hope y’all enjoy! kudos/comments are very much appreciated. :-)

1\. _“Pull over. Let me drive for a while.”_ **September 14th-16th 2011**

Since there’s nothing left for Tyler to do - no more dogs to take care of, no more kids to look after - he gets the idea to go on a roadtrip to Seattle. Instead of booking a flight, and being able to be there after a couple of hours, maybe three, Tyler decides he wants to _drive_ there himself, claiming that he wants to see the landscape as he drives by.

It’s a dumb idea, and Jamie knows Tyler knows, so he says, “You’re crazy. Why on earth would you want to _drive_ to freakin’ _Seattle_ by yourself?”

“Why not? I mean, it’s not like I’ve ever been normal,” Tyler replies; they’re lounging around Jamie’s living room on a Tuesday night. “Besides, I wanted to stop at interesting looking cities along the way and, I don’t know, have a look around. I haven’t been out of Dallas in freakin’ ages, man.”

“That’s going to take forever. No way you’re doing this alone, there’s no way I’m letting you.”

“Oh yeah? How are you going to stop me, Jamison?”

“I’m coming with you, yeah. We’ll take turns driving, and we can stop at random diners at ass o’clock, and shower at motels.”

“Let’s do this, then,” Tyler says.

 _I would do anything for you_ , Jamie doesn’t say, instead beaming a smile at Tyler and letting _it_ speak for him.

//

It’s late as they’re driving through Nevada. There are no hotels, or even motels, in sight. And Jamie feels like there won’t be either of those for at least another fifty miles. He looks to his left and sees that Tyler’s rubbing his eyes with his left hand, as if trying to keep himself awake.

“Alright, pull over,” Jamie says. “I’m not dying in the middle of nowhere. It’s about time for my turn anyway. You should get some sleep.”

Tyler looks like he’s about to protest, but then pulls over immediately. They switch seats and then Jamie’s driving. He drives until he sees an ok-looking hotel. Tyler wakes up and then checks them both into the hotel, more than ready for a better night’s sleep.

 

2\. _“It reminded me of you.”_ **May-August 1998**

The summer of 1998 is a rare one; Tyler and Jamie _don’t_ spend it in Jamie’s backyard, digging for rocks. Instead, the Benn’s go on a summer long vacation to Cancún, Mexico. Tyler’s sad, because of course he is. He’s not used to _not_ seeing Jamie for more than a day.

It’s tough, and it’s rough, and eventually he stops waiting for Jamie to barge into his room in the middle of the night - he knows that Jamie will be back soon.

He spends the rest of the summer hanging out with his sisters, talking to them about boys, and how they’re doing in school, and what it’s like to live outside of home. It’s nice and Tyler can feel himself growing closer to his sisters, more than ever.

//

Jamie comes back on a Tuesday. Tyler’s in the middle of his favorite movie, _Finding Nemo_ , when he barges in. He can’t help himself from grinning wide and jumping off the bed, hurrying towards Jamie. 

“You’re here!” Tyler says, wrapping his arms around Jamie’s neck, pulling him close. “You’re back, _finally_!”

“I told you it was only for the summer, you dork,” Jamie replies, hooking his arms under Tyler’s. “Now let me go, I brought you something from _Meh-he-co_.”

“You were gone for two months, and now all of the sudden you’re a trifecta or whatever. What did you bring me?”

Jamie reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a small shell. It’s mostly white, but he turns it in his hands to reveal some sort of stain shaped like a ‘t.’

Tyler’s so focused on staring at the shell that he doesn’t hear Jamie begin to speak.

“...and I don’t know,” Jamie says, low and quiet that Tyler almost has to strain to hear him. “We were on the beach one day, and I kinda stepped on something, and then I picked it up and saw the little t on it...and yeah...it reminded of the little t you have on your back.”

“Jamie, you’re a giant dork, you know that?”

“Yeah, I know. I’m sorry.”

Tyler shakes his head and kisses Jamie on the cheek. “Thank you. I love it.”

 

3\. _“No, no, it’s my treat.”_ **March 19th, 2013**

Snowing in Dallas isn’t unusual, but it usually stops around mid-February, which is why Tyler’s shocked one day when he goes to walk Marshall. The snow’s at least two feet high, and everything else is covered, except for the streets.

“Well boy, I guess you’re going to have to stay in with me all day,” he says, closing the door and unhooking Marshall from his leash. “You wanna help me bake some cookies? Or would you rather help me make some hot chocolate?”

Marshall is looking at Tyler like he’s saying _does it really look like I can actually help you with anything?_ and it makes Tyler laugh, because of course he’s going to have to do everything himself.

//

Right as he’s taking the cookies out of the oven, someone’s letting themselves into his house. There’s only one person, besides Tyler himself, that has keys - Jamie. He hears Marshall run from his place in the living room to inspect the front door. 

“Hey,” Jamie says, walking towards where Tyler is in the kitchen. He cups Tyler’s face and presses a kiss to his forehead - it’s how they’ve come to greet each other - which often gets them endless chirps from Jordie and whoever comes to visit. “Just thought I’d stop by. Crazy outside, eh?”

“Yeah, uh, I was going to go walk Marshall, but there’s snow _everywhere_ ,” Tyler replies, placing the cookies onto a plate. “Then I thought I might as well make some hot chocolate and some cookies instead. Sit, I’ll serve you some.”

“Oh, uh, you don’t have to. I can help you out with that. You already made everything.”

“Jamie. Sit. You’re always treating me to things. It’s my turn to do it today.”

“Okay.”

 

4\. _“Come here. Let me fix it.”_ **November 16th, 2011**

It’s no secret to anyone (except maybe Jamie himself because he’s extremely clueless sometimes) that Tyler gets jealous whenever Jamie goes on a date. He’s not jealous at the fact that Jamie actually goes on more dates than he does, he could never be jealous at the fact that Jamie’s happy. Tyler’s jealous at the fact that Jamie goes on dates with people that _aren’t_ him. Why should those people get to spend time with Jamie when he can’t? Why should those people get to _see_ or _touch_ Jamie when he can’t? It’s fucked up and it’s wrong, but Tyler can’t help himself from feeling that way.

//

“Going somewhere fancy, eh?” Tyler asks one afternoon, after he’s let himself into Jamie’s apartment. Jamie turns around from where he’s in front of the mirror, and there’s a jumbled up bowtie sitting up high on his chest; it just doesn’t look right. “Oh. Going somewhere really fancy, then.”

“Well, I thought I was, but I can’t show up like this, y’know?” Jamie replies. “I was supposed to go to some fancy dinner party with Cecilia, and she wanted me to wear a bowtie, but I can’t fucking tie it properly, so I’m just going to cancel.”

“Jamie Benn, you are the dumbest person on this Earth. Let me do the thing for you.”

“Do the what?”

“Let me tie the bowtie for you. I’ll fix it up all nice, and then Cecilia won’t even know what hit her.”

“Thank you.”

 

5\. _“I’ll walk you home.”_ **January 15th, 2010**

“Oh come on, Jam,” Tyler protests. “My house is literally _across the street_. I’m going to be fine.”

“You’re fucking _drunk_ , Tyler, there’s no way in hell I’m letting you go home by yourself. What if you get run over or some shit? What’re you going to do then, huh? Now get up, I’m walking you home.”

“But-”

“Shut the fuck up, I’m walking you home whether you like it or not.”

Tyler shuts his mouth then. He knows better than to argue with Jamie when Jamie starts swearing at him.

 

6\. _“Have a good day at work.”_ **June 4th, 2009**

Everybody is ecstatic when Tyler gets his first job, but no one, _no one_ is as ecstatic as Jamie is. He wakes up around the same time Tyler does, and eats breakfast with him, then he drives Tyler to work. And when Tyler comes back, Jamie asks about his day. They talk and talk for hours, until it’s time to go to sleep so they can do it all over again in the morning.

“Thanks for the ride to work, Jam,” Tyler says, kissing Jamie’s cheek as he unbuckles his seatbelt. 

“No problem, have a good day at work.”

Tyler smiles before he gets out of the car, leaving Jamie flushed and warm all over, a slight tingling sensation on his cheek. 

Maybe he _is_ allergic to peanuts. 

 

7\. _“I dreamt about you last night.”_ **April 6th, 2014**

“Last night I had a dream that you came to visit me,” Tyler says, wedging is phone in between his shoulder and ear. “How much longer are you going to be? I miss you.”

Jamie laughs, it’s soft and it makes Tyler warm all over. 

“I’ll be home soon,” he replies. “I, uh, I miss you too, y’know.”

“I know.”

 

8\. _“Take my seat.”_ **July 7th, 2014**

Jamie’s late to the morning’s meeting, about seven minutes. He’s really regretting not taking up on Tyler’s offer of driving them both to work this morning. 

//

When Jamie finally makes it to the meeting room, there aren’t any more chairs for him to sit on. He enters as quietly as he can (but it’s nearly impossible to be quiet because the door needs to be fixed or something because it’s creaky as heck). Nobody turns around, except Tyler (because of course he does). 

He waves Jamie over to where he’s sitting, on the second seat in the last row. 

“You’re early,” he whispers. “I hate to be the one to tell you, I told you so, but I told you so.”

“You’re hilarious, did I miss anything?”

“Nah, just the month’s stats. Uh, you should sit because you’re about to do a lot of writing.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll be fine.”

 

9\. _“I saved a piece for you.”_ **January 30th, 2013**

“Dang it, Martin,” Tyler says, exasperated at the fact that at his own party, there aren’t any pieces of cherry pie left. “I’m a good person, all I wanted was some pie.”

“You wanted what now?” Jamie asks, startling Tyler a bit (everyone’s outside). 

“I wanted some pie. Look, there’s none left.”

“Don’t worry, I got you.”

Tyler raises an eyebrow, and watches as Jamie opens the fridge and takes a piece of pie wrapped in plastic. 

“I saved this piece for you,” Jamie says as he hands Tyler the piece of pie. “Cold just like you like it.”

“Aw Jam, you didn’t have to.”

“I know how much you like it. Now eat it before Martin comes in here and eats it.”

“Fucking Martin.”

 

10\. _“I’m sorry for your loss.”_ **December 2014**

Tyler’s aunt dies in December. 

//

Jamie’s world comes crashing down while he’s in the middle of a very important meeting, halfway around the world.

“Jam, Jam, come home, _Jam_ ,” Tyler cries, and Jamie can actually _hear_ his heart breaking into a million tiny pieces. “Jam.”

Tyler breaks off into indistinguishable sobs, and it takes all of Jamie’s will power not to break into sobs himself.

“I’ll be there before you know it.”

//

Tyler doesn’t pick Jamie up at the airport. And Jamie doesn’t ask. 

//

Jamie lets himself into Tyler’s house.

“Ty, Ty, where are you?”

Nothing.

He digs his phone out of his pocket and calls Tyler’s phone. It rings and rings, but no one answers. 

Jamie hears a distant ringing, upstairs, so he immediately rushes upstairs. He heads straight for Tyler’s room, and finds him curled up on his bed. 

“Tyler, I’m here. I’m really sorry about your aunt. It’s going to be okay.”

 

11\. _“You can have half.”_ **June 17th, 2015**

Jamie comes home from work on a Wednesday night. Tyler’s with his family for the weekend so the house is empty, quiet, but not uncomfortable.

There’s a plate with a cheesecake on it, wrapped in plastic - Tyler must have made it before he left. It seems that he always makes some sort of dessert for Jamie when he visits his family, and Jamie can’t come along.

As he walks closer to the plate, he sees a white sheet of paper with Tyler’s messy, block writing on it.

_Have half. I want some when I come back. :-)_

Jamie smiles and shakes his head; he knows Tyler made the entire cheesecake for him.

 

12\. _“Take my jacket, it’s cold outside.”_ **December 19th, 2009**

Jamie goes into Tyler’s work one day. It’s the middle of his winter break, so he finally has time to go see Tyler _in action_ , since he hasn’t had the time to visit him there.

“Are you out of your fucking mind?” Tyler asks when Jamie gets ready to head back home. “It’s freezing outside and you didn’t even bring a sweater. Here, take my jacket. I’ll just ask my mom to bring me another one or something when she picks me up.”

“It’s not even that cold.”

“Don’t argue with me.”

 

13\. _“Sorry I’m late.”_ **May 4th, 2004**

Tyler is told that he’s the lead for the school’s yearly play on a Tuesday.

//

“Mom, please, can you drive a little faster, _please_?” Jamie begs as he looks at his watch; he’s about five minutes late to the start of Tyler’s play. “Ty’s play probably already started.” 

“I know honey, but the light’s on red,” she replies. “I can’t go anywhere unless it turns back to green, you know that.”

//

Jamie finally arrives three minutes later. Thankfully, it seems that the play hasn’t started yet because he sees most of the play’s “stars” lounging around with their families. He spots Tyler with his mom near the front rows so he immediately heads over there, his mom trailing him.

“Ty, hey,” Jamie says. “Sorry I’m late. I couldn’t find my lucky shirt.” 

“You were beginning to get me all worried. I’m glad you’re here now, though. Thanks for coming.”

“Well, I know how much this play means to you, there’s no way in the world that I’d miss something like this.”

 

14\. _“Can I have this dance?”_ **July 11th, 2015**

Jordie announces his engagement in February. And it’s safe to say that almost everyone is surprised when he says it’s to Jason. And it’s not to say that Jordie doesn’t love Jason, or that Jason doesn’t love Jordie; it’s that they’d broken up so many times (the last of which everyone thought that they’d never get back together) that none saw this coming.

//

“I’m happy for him, y’know,” Tyler says one night, while Jamie’s in the shower. “Didn’t see it coming, I don’t think anyone did, but at least he seems happy _for real_ this time.”

“I know,” Jamie replies.

//

Jordie tells Jamie that he wants Jamie to be his best man (to surprise of no one), while Jason tells Tyler the same thing (to the surprise of everyone).

//

The celebration is beautiful, everyone seems so happy and loose. Jamie’s talking to family when the song that Tyler donned theirs, _Dance with Me Tonight_ by Olly Murs, comes on. He excuses himself from the group and searches for Tyler.

He finds him sitting next to Blacker, talking nonsense, like they always do.

“Excuse me sir,” he says, struggling to keep a straight face. “May I have this dance?”

“I’m sure Jesse won’t mind,” Tyler replies, amusement clearly written on his features. “Of course.”

 

15\. _“I made your favorite.”_ **July 18th, 2009**

Tyler’s hands are over Jamie’s eyes as he guides them into the kitchen. 

“I told you, you didn’t have to do anything for today,” Jamie says, for what seems like the seventeenth time that day. “We could have just gone out or something.”

“Shut up already,” Tyler laughs. They take a few more steps, and then Tyler finally takes his hands off Jamie’s eyes. “I hope you like it. It’s all your favorites. I made them with your mom’s help, of course.”

“You’re the worst.”

“I know.”

 

16\. _“It’s okay. I couldn’t sleep anyway.”_ **February 12th, 2002**

There’s a knock on Jamie’s window. Well, not so much of a knock, but more like pebbles or small rocks hitting the window. He tries to ignore it, because he should really get to sleep, but he can’t; the soft _pelting_ is getting more and more insistent. Jamie finally gives up and walks over to the window.

“Tyler!?” he whisper shouts. “What the hell are you doing here? It’s like two in the morning.”

“Mom’s still out and I didn’t want to be alone. Can I come in?”

Jamie sighs, “Give me a second, I’ll be down in a minute.”

//

“Sorry for waking you up, by the way.”

“It’s okay, I was having a tough time falling asleep.”

 

17\. _“Watch your step.”_ **October 25th, 2008**

“We’re going to be late! Hurry up!” Tyler yells, before jogging down the aisle.

“Be careful going down aisle seven, I saw a wet floor sign.”

“Alright. Meet you at the register in five.”

 

18\. _“Here, drink this. You’ll feel better.”_ **June 6th, 2006**

“Mom said that honey with lemon will make your throat feel better,” Jamie says. “Wouldn’t have to drink it if you didn’t yell so much.”

“‘s not fair,” Tyler pouts. “You yelled more than I did!”

“Did not!”

“Did too!”

“Just drink this already.”

 

19\. _“Can I hold your hand?”_ **February 14th, 2015**

“And on our last stop today, on our grand tour of romantic spots in Dallas,” Tyler declares proudly. “The ice rink!”

“Oh my! I ain’t never been to one of those before!” Jamie replies sarcastically. “You’re so good to me, Tyler Benn.”

“Tyler _Benn_?”

“Shut up and hold my hand.”

“As you wish, Jamie _Seguin_.”

 

20\. _“You can borrow mine.”_ **October 7th, 1999**

“...and for those of you who signed up to draw the sunflowers, you guys should start taking your colored pencils out now,” Mrs. DeMarco says. “And for the rest of you, get into your groups.”

“Dang it!” Tyler whisper shouts. “I didn’t bring my pencils. I left them on the kitchen table.”

“Are you sure? Have you checked your back pack yet?” Jamie offers. “They might be in there.”

 _If looks could kill_ , Jamie thinks then, he’d have been dead as soon as Tyler’s eyes found his. 

“Here,” Jamie says, digging through his backpack. “You can borrow mine.”

“You sure?”

“That’s what best friends are for, yeah?”

 

21\. _“You might like this.”_ **November 19th, 2015**

“Hey babe,” Jamie says, nudging Tyler, who’s half asleep on him. “Check it out.”

“Jamie, I swear to god, if this is another of your-”

“No, look. You might like that.”

“That is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen, I love it.”

 

22\. _“It’s not heavy. I’m stronger than I look.”_ **May 3rd, 2015**

Jordie kind of looks at Jamie like he’s crazy when he tells him that he and Tyler are moving in together. Whatever, it’s not like Jordie’s in any position to tell him anything; he and Jason moved in together within a week of dating. At least Jamie and Tyler waited a little longer than that, a lot longer than that.

//

“We’re here,” Tyler says, squeezing Jamie’s hand. “Are you ready?”

“I’ve been ready since the day I met you,” Jamie replies. “Let’s get going before it gets dark. I don’t want to be moving boxes into the house when I can’t see anything.”

“Alright.”

Tyler leans over and presses a kiss to Jamie’s temple. He’s smiling as he gets out of the car. 

When Jamie finally gets out of the car, Tyler’s carrying the big, heavy box of pictures that Jamie wanted to get in the house as soon as they got there. 

“What are you doing?” Jamie asks. “That’s really heavy. Let me get that for you.”

“Babe, it’s not heavy,” he replies. “I work out too, y’know, I’m stronger than I look.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

 

23\. _“I’ll wait.”_ **October 31st, 2005**

“Hello, Mrs. Seguin,” Jamie says, his lisp more pronounced because of the plastic vampire teeth in his mouth. “Is Tyler ready yet?”

“Oh honey,” Tyler’s mom says, looking at Tyler amusedly. “He’s not ready yet. I think it’ll be a while. He said you can go ahead and go and he’ll catch up to you.”

“Oh. No, that’s okay. I’ll wait here.”

“Wonderful. Would you like anything to drink?”

“Just a water would be fine, thank you.”

 

24\. _“Just because.”_ **February 13th, 2012**

“So you want to go to dinner tomorrow?” Jamie asks, when they’re walking home one day. “I mean, unless you have other plans?”

“Jamison, does it look like I have any other plans for tomorrow?” he replies, bumping Jamie with his shoulder. “You know me, I would’ve said something to you if I did.”

“So do you want to go or not?”

“Why?”

“I dunno, just because.”

“Alright then. Pick me up at seven.”

“Sounds good.”

 

25\. _“Look both ways.”_ **August 25th, 2000**

It’s the first day of school, and there’s nobody more excited than Jamie. Tyler rolls his eyes as Jamie’s talking his head off on their way to school. It’s safe to say that there are a lot of cars when they get to school, parents and older siblings dropping their children off. And Jamie continues to talk and talk, stopping when he needs to take a breather. 

“Jamie be careful,” Tyler says, when they’re getting ready to cross the street. “Remember, look both ways. There are a lot of cars. Don’t want you gettin’ hit.”

 

26\. _“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”_ **July 7th, 2007**

“...and it’s not my fault that you didn’t listen to me, okay?” Tyler says, his arms crossed. “I kept telling you, warning you that he was no good for you, and did you listen? Of course you fucking didn’t. You went and did whatever the fuck you wanted, so don’t fucking blame me for him breaking your heart. Wasn’t _my_ fault.”

“Maybe if you had been fucking _clearer_ ,” Jamie replies, waving his hands in nonsensical gestures. “Then _maybe_ I would’ve gotten the fucking hint.”

“Listen, I was just trying to help you. Do you think it was fun for me to watch that asshole fool around your back? No, it was fucking torture. I’m sorry that you have the smallest brain in existence, but you’ve got to understand where I’m coming from.”

“Are you insulting me, are you seriously doing this right now?”

“Yeah!” Tyler yells. “Because you don’t seem to be able to get your head out of your ass. You’re being stubborn as all hell and this is the only way I’ve ever been able to get through to you.”

“Just don’t...just don’t yell at me, okay?”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, but _god Jamie_ , you’re so stubborn sometimes. I don’t know how to get through to you that you are worth so much more than what you’re settling for. You deserve someone who’s there for you, who listens to you, and doesn’t tell you that you’re dumb or whatever that jackass told you all the time. You’re worth so much.”

 

27\. _“Try some.”_ **March 3rd, 2003**

“What the hell is _that_?” Tyler says, pointing at Jamie’s ice cream cone. “It has fucking _chunks_ of something.”

“It’s ice cream _de nuez_ ,” Jamie replies. “Pecan ice cream. It’s really good, try some.”

“Dude, but the chunks.”

“Come on, don’t be such a baby.”

“Fine.”

 

28\. _“Drive safely.”_ **December 10th, 2015**

The road conditions haven’t been the best during the last couple of days. There’s black ice on the asphalt, ice collecting especially on curved roads. It isn’t unusual, but it continues to be scary.

“I’m really sorry that I can’t get out of work earlier,” Jamie apologizes, for the tenth time that night. “Mom’ll love having you by yourself first, though.”

“I know she will,” he replies, buttoning his coat buttons. “She keeps asking me to call her Momma Benn, or mom.”

“She really likes you. She’s never asked anyone to call her that. You’re special.”

They look into each other’s eyes for what seems like a million and one years. 

“Well, I’ve got to get going now. Don’t want to disappoint Mom.”

“Drive safely, okay?”

“Okay.”

 

29\. _“Well, what do you want to do?”_ **July 18th, 2001**

It isn’t unusual for it to rain this time of year, but it is unusual for it to rain on Jamie’s birthday (it hasn’t rained on this day since Jamie’s second birthday, which was, like, ten years ago). 

“We can’t go anywhere now,” Tyler pouts. “It’s raining really hard, not safe to drive or anything.”

“Well, what do you want to do?”

“I don’t know, Jamie, it is _your_ birthday.”

“Maybe a movie and some frozen pizza sounds good for now. We can go out tomorrow, if everything’s better.”

“That sounds like a plan.”

 

30\. _“One more chapter.”_ **September 6th, 2004**

“...and because he was my first love, we were meant to share that dream,” Jamie reads, to a wide eyed Tyler at the foot of his bed. “I reckon that’s at least one thing he never had to lose.”

“Wow,” Tyler comments. “That’s it? Can you read one more chapter for me, please?”

“ _One_ more chapter.”

 

31\. _“Don’t worry about me.”_ **May 2nd, 2010**

Jamie’s nose is dripping worse than the outside of his house after a particularly harsh storm. He can’t go more than five _seconds_ without clearing away his upper lip. Worst of all, he can’t fucking _smell or taste anything_. And he can tell that Tyler’s been cooking something amazing. Why did he have to get sick now? Fucked if he knew. 

“Jam,” Tyler says as he walks into the living room, where Jamie is currently bundled up in several blankets, even though it’s early may. “I just got called into work, man, I gotta go to work. Is there anyone you can call to come take care of you?”

“I can take care of myself,” Jamie protests, and then proceeds to cough out what seems to be half his lungs. “See? I’m okay.”

“You know what? I’m calling in, I’ll tell Mark that I can’t make it in today. There’s no way you’re okay enough to be by yourself.”

“I’m okay, Tyler, you have to stop worrying so much about me. I’ll be okay. I can wait up for dinner and shit. Go to work.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Don’t you worry about me, I’ll be fine.”

 

32\. _“It looks good on you.”_ **January 7th, 2011**

They’re going to be late if Jamie doesn’t come down the stairs right the fuck now.

“Jamie!” Tyler yells, putting his phone back in his pocket after looking at the time for the sixth time within the last hour. “We’re already running behind. If you don’t come down right now, we’re going to be _late_.”

“I’m coming, christ!” Jamie yells back. “I just,” he pauses as he comes down the stairs. “I was looking for that.”

“Looking for what?”

“My sweater. The one you’re wearing.”

“Oh, this is yours?”

“Yeah.”

“I can...I just, I saw it and I thought I’d wear it. I can give it back if you want.”

Jamie sighs and shakes his head, “No, leave it, it looks good on you. I’ll just wear one out of the closet here.”

 

33\. _“Close your eyes and hold out your hands.”_ **December 24th, 1998**

Jamie drags Tyler out of the main room, where everyone else is, and into his room. 

“Close your eyes and hold out your hands,” Jamie instructs.

“Why? Jamie, we have to get back out there before they start serving the cookies.”

“Can you please just do it?”

“Fine.”

Jamie takes off the silver ring that he’s been wearing since he came back from Mexico, and places it on Tyler’s outstretched hands. 

“What’s this?”

“A ring I’m giving you. It’s part of your present.”

“But Jamie, this is yours.”

He shakes his head, “Not anymore.”

 

34\. _“That’s okay, I bought two.”_ **May 9th, 2007**

“...and I’m so sorry dude, I just, it looked so good and, damn it,” Tyler says. “I had to have it, sorry.”

“It’s a good thing I planned ahead, I knew you’d do something like this,” Jamie says, sticking his tongue out to make sure Jamie knows he’s not mad. 

“I’m sorry, okay?”

“That’s okay, I bought two.”

“Jamie, oh my god, I was all worried that you’d be mad, and _all this time_ you had _another_? I hate you!” 

“No, you don’t. I’ll give you half.”

“Okay. I don’t hate you anymore.”

 

35\. _“After you.”_ **May 4th, 2004**

Tyler has not stopped blushing ever since Jamie started gushing about how _great_ his performance was. 

“...and like I don’t know how you remembered all those lines, like, you spoke _a lot_ ,” Jamie says. “I actually forgot you were Tyler for a second, you were that good.”

“Stop it, Jamie,” Tyler replies, fiddling with his hands. “I wasn’t _that_ good.”

“Wasn’t _that good_ , load of horse shit.”

“Jamie!” Jamie’s mom says. “Language!”

“Sorry.”

//

They arrive at Tyler’s favorite restaurant five minutes past eight. It isn’t his favorite because of the food, the food is good, but the seats are amazing. The booths are located along the wall of large windows, overlooking the city. 

Tyler prefers sitting on the side right next to the window, Jamie knows so, which is why he says, “After you, bud.”

 

36\. _“We’ll figure it out.”_ **January 16th, 2010**

There’s nothing more that Tyler hates than being found out, which is why he enlists Jamie’s help.

“Jamie, Jamie,” he says as quiet as he can, to avoid giving himself a bigger headache. “My mom is home, shit. Jamie wake up.”

“Fuck, what?” Jamie asks, voice thick with sleep.

“My mom is home, asshole. She doesn’t know I drink. What are we going to do?”

“Uh...I...I don’t know.”

“We have to do something, or I’m going to get in trouble.”

“It’s too early for this. Let me shower and then we’ll figure this out, okay?”

“Okay.”

 

37\. _“Can I kiss you?”_ **February 15th, 2015**

“I have to take you back home now,” Jamie says, looking like it’s paining him to say so, like he doesn’t want to let go of Tyler any time soon. “We’ve been out all night, and I don’t want to get you in trouble.”

“But babe, we’re young, the night is still young,” Tyler replies, his smile growing wider by the minute. “I’m sure we can stay out a little longer, don’t you think?”

“I don’t want you getting sick, my love.”

“You’re so fucking cheesy, you dork.”

“But you love me.”

“I do.”

//

They’re on their doorstep when Jamie asks, “Can I kiss you now? This is the part of the date where I kiss you, right? I mean I’m about to drop you off at your house.”

“At _our_ house, Jamison.”

“So can I kiss you or no?”

“Of course you can.”

 

38\. _“I like your laugh.”_ **October 4th, 1998**

In hindsight, this is where it all begins. 

//

Jamie has the cutest laugh of any of his friends, Tyler has come to find. He tells Jamie so.

“What?” Jamie asks, not sure of what Tyler just said because it came out all mumbled. “Tyler, dude, you’ve gotta be more clear.”

“I like your laugh.”

Jamie gives him a goofy smile.

“Thank you.”

 

39\. _“Don’t cry.”_ **July 8th, 2007**

“Is everything okay?”

“No,” Jamie replies, wiping at his eyes with the bottoms of his palms. “I...James has a girlfriend now.”

“Already?” Tyler asks in surprise. “Damn, he moves on fast.”

“Well, there’s not much to move on from; he never really cared so...and I can’t blame him, I’m not much.”

“Shut the hell up, okay? You are the most selfless person I know. You are amazing, you’re funny, and you have the cutest smile and laugh of anyone, ever. You’re just _so_ amazing and if James couldn’t see that, then it’s his fucking loss.”

“But-” Jamie starts, and stops, sniffing and wiping at his eyes furiously. 

“Come on now, I’m sorry if that was mean, but don’t cry. I need to get this through to you. You’re my best friend, okay? I need you to see that.”

 

40\. _“I made this for you.”_ **July 18th, 2008**

Tyler finishes singing _Happy Birthday_ a couple of words behind everyone else, right as Jamie and Jordie are walking in, Jason not too far behind. Everyone hands Jamie the presents they bought for him, and give him pats on the back. 

“I made this for you,” Tyler says, handing Jamie a handwoven scarf. “I know it’s July, and you won’t need it until December, but it’s the first one I made and I just thought you should have it. Sorry it’s shitty.”

“That’s okay. I love it, thank you.”

 

41\. _“Go back to sleep.”_ **January 10th, 2015**

Jamie gets a call around nine in the morning on a Saturday telling him that he needs to come into work. He tries to be as careful as he can as he untangles himself from Tyler, slowly setting Tyler’s arms at his sides, trying to be as quiet as he can as he steps out of bed. It doesn’t work though; it never does.

“Jamie?” Tyler asks, still in a sleepy daze. “What are you doing up? ‘s nine.”

“Don’t worry, just go back to sleep.”

Thankfully, Tyler obliges this time, he closes his eyes and his breathing goes even as Jamie finishes getting ready. He kisses Tyler’s forehead before telling him that he’ll be back in the afternoon. 

 

42\. _“Is this okay?”_ **December 7th, 2007**

Tyler knows it’s dumb, but he can’t bring himself to care. He just wants to help Jamie.

“Is this okay?” he asks Jamie once he’s picked his outfit for the night. “It doesn’t make me look too young or anything?”

Jamie gives him the once over and smiles, “You look fine.”

 

43\. _“I picked these for you.”_ **December 23rd, 2009**

“...well, your sweater is definitely _ugly_ ,” Tyler says, raking his eyes over Jamie’s body - his outfit. “But even though it is, your shoes are just a big n-o.”

“What do you mean?” Jamie protests. “These shoes are fine.”

Tyler shakes his head, and heads out of the room. Jamie, of course, follows him like a lost puppy. Tyler’s crouched down in front of the hallway closet, digging around in a large white plastic bag. 

“Here,” Tyler says, holding up a pair of bright yellow shoes. “I picked these for you, ‘cause I knew you couldn’t do it on your own.”

If it were under different circumstances, Jamie might have been offended. Instead, he mutters a quick thanks and goes to try the shoes on.

 

44\. _“I’ll drive you to the hospital.”_ **March 17th, 2010**

There’s the loudest knock on Jamie’s door right as he’s drifting off on his couch. There’s something different about it, some sort of sense of urgency. He hurries, not even bothering to put his shoes back on his feet, and answers the door.

“My sister is at the hospital with my mom,” Tyler says quickly, frantic almost. “Cassidy fell down a flight of stairs and I think she broke her leg.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll drive you there right now.”

 

45\. _“What do you want to watch?”_ **June 9th, 2012**

It’s late, and it’s raining, and there’s no way they can go out now. They’ve already eaten, but that doesn’t stop them from having a giant bowl of popcorn in front of them, sodas at their sides. 

“What about watching a movie?” Jamie suggests. “We can watch one of those independent ones you’re always wanting to watch.”

“Nah,” Tyler replies easily, popping some popcorn into his mouth. 

“What do you want to watch then?”

“A cheesy romantic one.”

“I know just the one.”

 

46\. _“You can go first.”_ **March 8th, 2006**

Tyler gets the good news that he can graduate with Jamie in January. 

//

“Okay, so now we’re going to take our last quiz of the year,” Professor Collins announces. “Y’all should know the procedure by now. Half of you guys needs to leave and the other half needs to stay.”

Jamie turns to Tyler and says, “You can go first.”

“Are you sure?” Tyler asks, raising an eyebrow. “You always want to take these quizzes first. Did you hit your head in the morning?”

“No, but like, it’s the _last_ one, so you can go first.”

“Thank you.”

 

47\. _“Did you get my letter?”_ **September 6th, 1998**

“Hey Jam,” Tyler says. “Did you get my letter?”

“Of course I did, you nerd,” Jamie says. “Couldn’t really read it ‘cause you know, your handwriting is awful.”

“But you got it, right?”

“Yes.”

 

48\. _“I’ll do it for you.”_ **December 24th, 2009**

“Remember back when we were kids and you wrote me that letter with your _awful_ handwriting?” Jamie asks, fanning himself with a christmas card. 

“Yeah?”

“Well, it turns out your handwriting isn’t as awful now as it used to be, and I was kind of hoping you’d write a nice message to my friend in Georgia for me?”

“But he’s _your_ friend, not mine, JaBenn.”

“Please, will you.”

“Fine, I’ll do it for you.”

 

49\. _“Call me when you get home.”_ **April 11th, 2011**

“...and just call me when you get home, okay?” Tyler asks, smoothing down Jamie’s stray hairs. 

“Tyler, Victoria isn’t home anymore, okay?” Jamie replies. “Dallas is home. It’s always been home.”

“Okay, then, just call me when you get to Victoria.”

“I will.”

 

50\. _“I think you’re beautiful.”_ **February 16th, 2015**

They’re lying in bed one night, arms and legs a tangled mess.

“Stop thinking so much,” Tyler whispers. “You’re going to break something. What are you even thinking about anyway?”

“Nothing...I just,” Jamie sighs. “I think you’re so beautiful, and sometimes I wonder how in the world someone like me ended up with someone like you in my life.”

“Not tonight Jamie, or ever. And you ended up with me only ‘cause I was lucky enough to become your friend in the first place.”

 

51\. _“Are you sure?”_ **November 2nd, 2008**

“I’m getting a tattoo.”

Jamie stares at Tyler from where he’s sitting on the couch, “What?” is all he can manage to ask before Tyler is sitting next to him.

“I told you that I’ve been wanting to get one since like _last year_ ,” he replies, shrugging. “I mean unless you weren’t paying attention then I can see why you busted out the confused cow eyes.”

“Fuck you, I don’t have cow eyes. What do you mean you’re getting a tattoo, when?”

“Next Tuesday.”

“Oh wow, okay...uhm, are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

“I’ll come with you then.”

“Will you?”

“Yeah,” he says, smiling, the _I would do anything for you_ is left unsaid.

 

52\. _“Have fun.”_ **May 2nd, 1998**

“...so I won’t be spending the summer here,” Jamie explains, avoiding Tyler’s eyes. “I’ll still call you everyday and stuff. It’ll be like I’m still here with you. Besides, it won’t be that long; I’ll be back in August right before school starts again.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

“Have fun then,” Tyler replies, offering a wide smile that brings a wave of relief over Jamie.

 

53\. _“Sit down, I’ll get it.”_ **June 18th, 2015**

Jamie catches a nasty virus, brought on by a wave from the North. He’s wheezing and coughing, and it seems like at any minute, he’ll hack out his lungs. His throat is dry and his eyes feel like they’re on fire. Tyler doesn’t care though; well, he cares (and worries) that Jamie’s sick, but he doesn’t care that he might catch the same virus - he insists that he has to take care of Jamie up close and personal, as if he didn’t do that on a daily basis. 

They’re watching a movie one afternoon, Jamie’s head in Tyler’s lap, shaking them both whenever Jamie has a cough attack.

Someone knocks and Jamie makes a move to get the door, only for Tyler to knock him back down. 

“Sit your ass down, Jamison,” Tyler says, smiling so Jamie knows he’s joking. “With your luck you’ll probably have a cough attack on your way to the door and then hit yourself with something. I’ll get it.”

 

54\. _“I made reservations.”_ **January 31st, 2013**

“I know you said you didn’t want to go anywhere,” Jamie says as they park outside the new restaurant Tyler’s been wanting to try. “But I went ahead and got you something anyway, because you’re my best friend and you deserve to be treated somewhere.”

“Is this why we’re parked about a block from anywhere?” Tyler asks, craning his neck to scan the landscape, as if to see if he could see anything from where he sat.

“We’re actually in the Reunion Tower parking lot, Tyler.”

“Oh, Jamie, you’re the worst. You said you were taking me out for dinner! I’ve seen Dallas, why would you do this?”

“Calm down, okay? We’re actually going to the restaurant _in_ the Tower.”

“But Jamie,” Tyler whisper shouts. “That’s expensive as shit, plus, don’t you need reserv- Jamie you didn’t.”

“Jamie, you did.”

“Dude.”

“I made reservations after I took you home last year when we were driving around town, seeing the lights and stuff.”

“Oh wow.”

“So, do you want to go or what?”

“Hell yeah.”

 

55\. _“I don’t mind.”_ **April 2nd, 2003**

“...and thank you again for staying with him Tyler,” Jamie’s mom says for the thousandth time. “Remember if you need anything, just call your parents or us, you got it?”

“Yes ma’am,” Tyler replies. “I’ll do my best to take care of this monster.”

“Hey!” Jamie squeaks indignantly, sending him into another coughing fit. 

Jamie’s mom shakes her head and leaves the room, but not before reminding Tyler that if he or Jamie need anything, to just call. _Okay_.

“Are you sure you don’t mind staying over?”

“I don’t mind, you’d do the same for me.”

“Would not.”

“Shut up and drink your medicine.”

“But I have none.”

“Shut up anyway.”

 

56\. _“It brings out your eyes.”_ **October 14th, 2014**

Jamie somehow convinces Jordie to come shopping with him. It doesn’t exactly _stop_ Jordie from complaining the entire time they’re at the mall. He complains and complains about how he would be having more fun if Jason had come along.

“Jordie, you know I love you, but if you complain one more time I _will_ punch you,” Jamie snaps. “Besides, you were the one that didn’t want to go to his aunt’s wedding. You could have been dancing with him instead of some rando.”

“Yeah, thanks for reminding me,” Jordie replies. “And it’s not that I didn’t want to go, it’s that his aunt fucking _hates_ me.”

“She doesn’t. His whole family loves you. Now quit complaining and help me find something for Tyler.”

“Again? Didn’t you get him something last week?”

“Shut up and help me look.”

//

“Took you a while,” Tyler says; he’s splayed out over the couch in the living room. “I thought you weren’t going to make it in time for dinner.”

“I actually ate dinner over at Jordie’s,” Jamie says, trying his best to keep a straight face. “Came over as soon as we were done.”

“You’re shitting me, right? Asshole. You should have told me so I wouldn’t have made so much.”

“I’m kidding. What did you make, _babe_?”

“What did you think I made, _love_?”

“You don’t have to be so mean.”

//

“So Jordie and I went shopping today,” Jamie says later that night, when they’re both sacked out on the couch. “And I kinda bought you something.”

“Oooh, feeling generous, are we?”

Jamie punches him in the arm, “Shut up. Get up.”

For once Tyler does what he’s told, and gets up. Jamie pulls out a ring from his pocket, and Tyler’s eyes go wide. 

“It goes on your index finger, calm down,” Jamie says as he rolls his eyes. “I bought it because I thought it would bring out your eyes.”

“My eyes are brown,” Tyler says wryly. “What can bring them out? Poop?”

“Oh, be quiet. I can return it if you don’t like it.”

“I _guess_ I can keep it.”

“Jerk.”

 

57\. _“There is enough room for both of us.”_ **November 2nd, 1999**

“Are you sure your parents are going to be okay with me coming along?” Jamie asks, still unsure even though Tyler’s told him time and time again that he asked his parents and that they were totally okay with it. “I mean it’s a family event and I don’t want to be intruding or anything.”

“For the last time, Jamie,” Tyler says, not exasperated, but understanding. “You’re not _like_ family, you _are_ family, okay? Don’t ever think for one second that my family doesn’t want you along for the ride. You’re my best friend, and if anyone ever makes you feel like you’re not - yes, including myself - _tell me_. Besides, there’s more than enough room for the both of us.”

“You sure?”

“More than sure,” Tyler says with a smile.

 

58\. _“You don’t have to say anything.”_ **September 8th, 2012**

Tyler’s sitting on the front steps of his house when Jamie drives up. He’s squeezing an empty water bottle between his two hands, trying to keep his anger from spilling over. Jamie knows he’s about seconds from spilling over, knows that he might start yelling at him as soon as he steps out of the car - he deserves it, though, so he’s not even going to try to defend himself.

“I can’t believe you would do something like that,” Tyler says, not looking up from staring at the floor, still squeezing the bottle between his hands. “I thought you were my best friend, I thought _we_ were best friends. I guess I was wrong, eh? Someone’s best friend would never do that. I’m not mad, I swear, I’m just really disappointed in you. I thought you wanted me to be happy. I guess I was wrong about that too.”

“Tyler, listen-”

“Tyler listen, nothing. You listen to me. I really liked Cameron and now you’ve _ruined_ whatever I had with him, _you_ -”

“ _I was jealous, okay?!_ Jealous because I thought I was supposed to be your best friend, I thought _I_ was supposed to be the one you told everything to. Ever since you started hanging out with Cameron, you rarely told me shit. It was always ‘oh no, I already told Cam.’ That fucking hurt dude, okay? I love you, I’m _in love_ with you, as big and gay as you can imagine. You know when I realized? ‘99! I’ve been in love with you for twelve years.”

“Jamie, I…”

“You don’t have to say anything,” Jamie sighs. “I know I fucked up big time, but I just needed you to know. I hope this doesn’t change things between us, and if it does, I’m so sorry.”

Tyler opens his mouth to say something, but by the time he forms any words, Jamie’s already gone.

 

59\. _“Wow.”_ **February 14th, 2015**

“Are we leaving yet or not?” Jamie asks from where he’s sitting on the couch, playing on his phone. “I thought you said we’d be leaving about half an hour ago.”

“I’m right here,” Tyler says from behind him, causing Jamie to jump a little. “What do you think?”

“Wow.”

“Wow what, Jamie? Wow good or bad?”

“Just… wow.”

“So you like it then?” he asks, turning slowly to show Jamie the entirety of his outfit. 

“Duh.”

 

60\. _“Happy birthday.”_ **July 18th, 1998**

Jamie’s playing with the sand, listening to the crash of the waves, when his mom calls him over. He wipes his hands on his shorts, which doesn’t really do much except rub more sand, _wet_ sand, on his palms.

“There’s someone on the phone for you,” his mom says, handing him the phone. “He wants to tell you something important.”

Jamie smiles as he takes the phone, holding it up to his ear, he says, “Hello?”

“Jam!” Tyler says, well, _yells_. “How is Mexico?”

“It’s good. We’re staying at this resort near this beautiful beach. It’s so great, I wish you were here.”

“Maybe next time, yeah?”

“For sure.”

“Oh yeah, uh, I called to wish you a happy birthday. I hope you’re having a lot of fun and I can’t wait until you come so we can hang out again.”

“I’ll be back before you know it.”

 

61\. _“I’ll pick it up after work.”_ **May 2nd, 2010**

Tyler excuses himself from the meeting to answer a phone call from Jamie. His phone has been ringing non stop since he entered the “meeting room,” so he figures it must be something important because Jamie just _won’t stop calling_ , and the buzzing is driving him insane.

“I’m in a meeting, Jamie,” Tyler says, quietly pacing back and forth across the hall. “Can this wait?”

“I’m out of tissues,” Jamie says, and oh god, he sounds like death. “There’s only toilet paper around here and it’s hurting my nose. I think I may have peeled some of my skin off.”

“Okay, I’ll pick them up after work. Is there anything else you want me to get for you?”

“Some food, please? I’ve been wanting to make myself something, but everything hurts.”

“Yeah, I’ll pick some of that too.”

“Thank you, and sorry for bothering you at work.”

“No problem.”

 

62\. _“It can wait until tomorrow.”_ **May 7th, 2005**

“I’m sorry I got sick,” Tyler says, after he’s blown his nose for what seems like the tenth time in two minutes. “You didn’t have to stay with me, though. Didn’t you have to go to that one thing downtown.”

“They gave us several days to attend so,” Jamie explains. “It can wait until tomorrow.”

“Thank you for staying with me, then.”

 

63\. _“Cross my heart and hope to die.”_ **March 9th, 2002**

“If I tell you a secret, do you promise not to laugh or tell anyone?” Jamie asks while they’re finishing up their math homework one night. “Promise me.”

“I promise.”

“I’ve never kissed anyone.”

“What?” Tyler asks, dropping his pencil. “But aren’t you like almost thirteen?”

“Yeah…”

Tyler sighs, shoving his notebook and textbook to the side, scooting closer to Jamie. He grabs Jamie’s hand and forces him to stop writing and drop his pencil. Startled, Jamie drops his pencil and looks up at Tyler. There’s something in his eyes, Tyler can tell, that makes it seem like telling Tyler that he’s never kissed anyone was very difficult for him.

“Do you ever wonder what it’s like?” he asks.

“Well, yeah, I mean… I’ve thought about what it’s like to kiss girls, sometimes boys too. I don’t know. I just want to kiss someone, y’know?”

“Let me kiss you,” Tyler offers; it’s a bad idea and he knows it, but he can’t bring himself to care.

“What?”

“I could, y’know, be your first kiss. Like you won’t have to wonder what it’s like to kiss someone anymore.”

“You won’t tell anyone, right?” Jamie asks, still a little skeptical. 

“Cross my heart and hope die.”

They close the distance between them, and it’s _nothing_ like Jamie expected.

“Huh,” Jamie says, impressed. “That… that was nothing like I expected it to be.”

“Yeah…”

 

64\. _“It’s two sugars, right?”_ **February 1st, 2013**

“I can’t believe it’s still so cold outside,” Tyler says, rubbing his hands together. “I would have expected it to be at least a few degrees warmer. Do you have some coffee? I want some coffee.”

“Sure do,” Jamie says. “It’s two sugars, right?”

“Thank you.”

 

65\. _“I’ll help you study.”_ **March 7th, 2006**

“Ugh, I don’t want to go to class tomorrow,” Tyler groans. “We have another stupid quiz, and I’m honestly, _so_ over them.”

“But you need them to get better grades,” Jamie points out. “You don’t want to fall behind, especially now. Here, I’ll help you study.” 

“You’re the best.”

 

66\. _“Stay over.”_ **September 12th, 2012**

“So I guess you’re not mad at me anymore,” Jamie says, hanging his coat next to Tyler’s. “Uh, so, where’s the box that you need me to pick up?”

“You really think that I’m going to let you go that easily?” Tyler asks, shaking his head. “I’m not going to let this go so easily, or any time soon, for that matter.”

“Listen, Tyler, whatever I said, just forget it. Okay? Now, if you could give me the box and I could head back home, that would be great.”

“Would you just shut up for a second, and listen to me? Fuckin’ hell. You’re always like this, just _be quiet_ and let me speak. I’m not mad at you and I never said I was. I’m sorry for all those things I said. You were right, okay? You were right about Cameron. I was just so excited to begin a relationship with him ‘cause I had been chasing after him for so long, I’m sorry.”

“What I did wasn’t right, either. I should’ve thought things through before doing what I did, I didn’t think about how you would react, I only thought about how this would benefit you. I’m sorry, too.”

“You don’t have to be sorry for anything. I was the one who overreacted.”

Jamie sighs, walks over to Tyler, and wraps his arms around him, squeezing him close. 

“Stay over?” Tyler mumbles.

“Of course.”

 

67\. _“I did the dishes.”_ **May 25th, 2015**

“Guess who did the dishes?” Jamie calls, as Tyler’s coming home from buying their groceries. “I did the dishes!”

“You’re the best!

 

68\. _“You didn’t have to ask.”_ **October 9th, 2012**

Jamie calls Tyler over on a Tuesday.

//

“Can you _please_ help me out and help me prepare for this interview?”

“You didn’t have to ask,” Tyler replies. “What do you need help in?”

“Everything.”

“Well it’s a good thing we have time, eh?

 

69\. _“I bought you a ticket.”_ **July 7th, 2009**

“Okay, so I know you were really pumped to see Cecilia’s Machine,” Tyler says, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. “So… I went ahead and bought you a ticket with my first paycheck.”

“Dude, you what?” Jamie says, eyes so wide open that Tyler thinks they might pop out of the sockets. “I thought those were sold out.”

“They sold out last month, which is when I spoke to my boss, and he was really cool about it and gave me half my check in advance. Totally worth it, if you ask me.”

“I could hug you so hard right now.”

“Go ahead.”

 

70\. _“You’re warm.”_ **September 12th, 2012**

“You want to head up to bed now?” Tyler asks when he catches Jamie yawning for the fifth time. 

“For sure.”

//

Tyler makes a pleased noise when his toes touch Jamie’s warm feet. He curls up further into Jamie. “You’re so warm.”

“And you’re so cold,” Jamie laughs, playfully shoving Tyler. “Get off me you leach.”

“Never.”

 

71\. _“No reason.”_ **June 5th, 2004**

“You want to go skating?” Jamie asks. 

“Why?”

“No reason.”

“Sure.”

 

72\. _“I’ll meet you halfway.”_ **June 5th, 2004**

“It’s not that scary,” Jamie says, trying his best not to laugh at Tyler, who’s across the rink, holding on with white knuckles to the railing. “You can do it.”

“Fuck off, Benn,” Tyler nearly yells. “And stop laughing. Just because you can skate, doesn’t mean everybody else can too.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll meet you halfway, will you skate with me then?”

“Okay, fine, yeah.”

 

73\. _“Take mine.”_ **November 29th, 2011**

“Jam, Jam,” Tyler says, shaking Jamie awake. “I need to go pick Cass up, and I can’t find my coat.”

“So?” Jamie smirks; Tyler punches him in the arm, causing him to frown slightly. “Take mine. It should be on the hook behind the hallway closet door.”

“Thanks.”

 

74\. _“We can share.”_ **December 10th, 2013**

_I’ll be waiting for you under the tree we always sit at. Don’t worry about bringing a blanket and extra things to keep us warm. I couldn’t find the individual, smaller blankets. We can share the big, red fleece one. Just remember to bring the picnic box with our lunch that I packed in the fridge._

_-Jamie_

 

75\. _“I was just thinking about you.”_ **May 4th, 2003**

Jamie’s at home by himself when he hears a knock downstairs. His mom told him not to open the door for anyone, that anyone that lived in the house had keys. He gets up and very carefully walks to his window, slightly pushing the curtain to the side, only enough to let him see. The person - Tyler - knocks again.

//

“I was just thinking about you,” Tyler says, as Jamie’s letting him in. “I don’t think you want to be alone, so I came over. You don’t mind, do you?”

“Of course not.”

 

76\. _“I want you to have this.”_ **October 10th, 2001**

Jamie and Tyler sit outside Jamie’s house, on the steps of the front porch. They look at the cars passing by and wonder what type of life the people driving those cars lead, hopefully a good one, where they are happy. 

“You know you’re my best friend, right?” Jamie asks, still not taking his eyes off the road. 

“Yes,” Tyler replies, turning his head slightly. “The same way you should know that you’re also _my_ best friend.”

“Good.”

//

“I want you to have this,” Jamie says, unclipping his watch from his left hand. “I know that I said it was a present from my mom, but she gave it to me saying that I should only give this to someone who meant a lot to me. There’s no one that means as much to me than you do. I want you to have it.”

“You mean so much to me too.”

 

77\. _“Call me if you need anything.”_ **November 9th, 2008**

“I can’t believe you’re sick again,” Jamie laughs. “This is like the fifth time you’ve gotten sick this year. You should seriously consider going to the doctor’s.”

“Okay, first of all, this is only the second time I’ve gotten sick,” Tyler replies, sneezing a couple of times, and then clearing his throat. “Second, I’m never going back to Dr. Klimovitz ever again. I heard too many things that I did not need to hear.”

“You’re such a child. I’ll be down in the kitchen making more soup for your sick ass. Call me if you need anything. Just, I’m not helping you to the bathroom again.”

“You suck.”

 

78\. _“Do you want to come, too?”_ **August 14th, 2014**

“I’m going shopping for a suit that I’m going to wear to my aunt’s wedding,” Tyler announces. “You want to come? I could use your opinion on how it looks.”

“Yeah, I could do that.”

 

79\. _“I’ll still be here when you’re ready.”_ **December 1st, 2012**

“You know, they say the world is going to end soon,” Tyler casually mentions. “And I’ve been thinking about what you told me back in September for a while now. Since that night, actually.”

“What does that have to do with anything, Tyler?” Jamie asks, brows furrowed in confusion. “And the world isn’t ending anytime soon. It’s only ending for those who are going to die, but that’s about it. For the rest of us? Yeah, I’m pretty sure we’re going to keep on living.”

“Okay, fine, if you want to be a smart ass. I’ve been thinking about what you told me back in September since that, y’know, since that night. I, y’know, _that_ too.”

“You what?”

“I feel the same way about you, too. I think I’ve always felt the same way about you. I was just too blind to see it.”

“You don’t have to, uh, y’know, say it back if you really don’t feel the same way,” he explains, his voice cracking on the last word. “I said it because I’ve literally been in love with you since nineteen-ninety-fucking-nine. You really don’t have to say it back.”

“But I want to.”

Jamie shakes his head. “I love you, yes, but I also love myself. I don’t want you to say this because _you feel like you have to_ say it back, just ‘cause I said too. I don’t want to be your rebound, which this early, it sure makes it feel like I am. Think about it, and if you still feel like you feel the same way, then we’ll talk; I’ll still be here when you’re ready.”

Tyler sighs, but nods his head anyway, not bothering to protest. 

 

80\. _“Is your seatbelt on?”_ **September 14th, 2011**

“You ready to go?” Jamie asks, joining Tyler in the car and closing the door after him. “And is your seatbelt on? For crying out loud, I’m _not_ letting you stand in the middle of the car and stick your upper half out of the sunroof.”

“You’re such a party pooper. Besides I was only going to stand for a few miles.”

“Not on my watch.”

 

81\. _“Sweet dreams.”_ **January 9th, 2015**

“...today was just such a long day,” Tyler says, tightening his grip around fork. “Michael kept bitching about my report last week, and how he didn’t understand it. I used his fucking guidelines! I don’t understand how he _didn’t_ understand it, honestly.”

“Maybe he was having a bad day,” Jamie replies, taking a long drink of his water. “You never know.”

“So you’re telling me that he has a bad day every day?”

“Who knows.”

//

“I still don’t understand how someone that small can be so angry.”

“I don’t think he’s always angry,” Jamie says around his toothbrush.

//

“You’re going to be fine, just do your best to go with the flow.”

“I guess you’re right. Sweet dreams.”

“You too, babe.”

 

82\. _“I was in the neighborhood.”_ **September 1st, 2000**

“...and so I was in the neighborhood,” Tyler says shyly. “I came to visit you.”

Jamie looks at him like _are you serious right now?_ , but instead says, “Dude, you’re always in the neighborhood. You live here.”

“I know that, but I came to visit you anyway.”

“Fine, come in” Jamie says with a smile, opening the door wider so Tyler can come in.

 

83\. _“Stay there. I’m coming to get you.”_ **June 10th, 2010**

Jamie’s just about done with the dishes when his phone starts blasting out _27_. He groans when he realizes that he left his phone all the way on the table next to the front door. As he walks there, he hopes that Tyler stays on the line and doesn’t hang up.

“Hello?” he asks, hoping he doesn’t sound as out of breath as he really is. “Tyler? What’s up?”

“Uh, you remember that I told you about that car following me to and from work all last week?” Tyler replies, making Jamie raise his eyebrow - ‘cause yeah, yeah he remembers. “Well, it’s parked outside right now, and I’m kinda scared to walk home.”

“Fuck, okay yeah, stay there. I’m coming to get you.”

“Thank you so much.”

“No problem.”

 

84\. _“The key is under the mat.”_ **October 22nd, 2004**

“I seriously don’t understand why in the world you still keep knocking when you know there’s a key under the mat,” Tyler says, letting Jamie in. “You could just, y’know, _grab_ the key from under the mat and _open_ the door.”

“I think you’re just mad that _you_ have to get up and open the door for me every time,” Jamie replies, with his signature smirk on his face. “Wouldn’t hate it so much if you would have told me _where_ the key was in the first place.”

“Now you know.”

 

85\. _”It doesn’t bother me.”_ **March 14th, 2015**

“Do you remember James?” Jamie asks when he’s helping Tyler prepare dinner that night. 

“How can I forget?” Tyler says with a scowl on his face. “I hate him. Why are you bringing him up?”

“He said he was coming to dinner.”

Tyler freezes. “What?”

“I bumped into him at the store the other day, and we started talking, and well I kinda, might’ve accidentally invited him to dinner.”

“Oh, uh, that’s, uh, that’s fine. I’ll just set an extra place.”

“It doesn’t bother you?”

“It doesn’t bother me one bit,” Tyler smiles. “We live together, we’re in love. It’s good. We’re good.”

 

86\. _”You’re important too.”_ **March 30th, 2001**

“I don’t know who told you that but it’s absolutely not true at all,” Tyler says, running his fingers through Jamie’s hair. “You’re important and you will always be important. I don’t care what anyone says, you have to get that through your hair. You are _so important_.”

“You’re important too,” Jamie replies.

“We both are.”

 

87\. _“I saved you a seat.”_ **July 4th, 1999**

“We’re not even American,” Tyler complains, handing Jamie a hotdog. “I don’t understand why we have to be here just to see the fireworks.”

“Come on, Tyler, it’s _fireworks_.”

“I don’t see what the big deal is all.”

“You’re such a downer,” Jamie replies. “I saved you a seat, at least, so you won’t have to be bitching about your legs hurting.”

“I don’t complain!”

“Do too.”

 

88\. _“I’ll see you later.”_ **July 7th, 2014**

“Sectors 44 through 70 may go now,” Michael says. “Sectors 71 through 90 stay behind.”

Tyler throws his head back. “I think Michael hates me. We’ve gone over what we needed to go over before you got here.”

“Maybe you need to go through something else that wasn’t covered earlier,” Jamie suggests. “I don’t know-”

“James,” Michael interrupts. “Did you not hear? Sectors 44 through 70 were dismissed a couple of minutes ago. Why are you still here?”

“Why are you such a prick?” Tyler mumbles, and then louder, “his name is _Jamie_.”

“Whatever. He needs to leave.”

“I’ll see you later,” Jamie says, patting Tyler’s shoulder before leaving the room.”

“Now, as I was saying…”

 

89\. _“I noticed.”_ **June 15th, 2011**

“You probably didn’t even notice that I got a new tattoo last month,” Tyler pouts. 

“Oh, I noticed,” Jamie replies. “It’s impossible to miss that giant eagle on your chest when you never wear a shirt.”

“Okay, first of all, the only time I _don’t_ wear a shirt is when it’s hot outside, which, it is right now, so your point is invalid.”

“Second?”

“Second nothing, be quiet.”

 

90\. _“You can tell me anything.”_ **December 12th, 2008**

Jamie and Tyler have been sitting on Tyler’s bed for the past hour and a half. Well, Jamie hasn’t exactly been _sitting_ as much as had his head in Tyler’s lap for the past hour. Tyler’s had his fingers in Jamie’s hair the entire time, which is making Jamie want to fall asleep.

“You know you can tell me anything, right?” Tyler asks. “I would never make fun of you or laugh at you. Well, as long as it’s something serious.”

“Jerk,” Jamie laughs. “But yes, I know.”

“Okay good.”

 

91\. _“I hope you like it.”_ **January 31st, 2002**

“There’s something I’ve been wanting to give you, but now that it’s your birthday,” Jamie says, handing Tyler a bright, green box. “I thought it would be a good idea.”

“It better not be a stupid chocolate key like you gave me last year,” Tyler teases. “Because if it is, you can consider this friendship effectively, over.”

“Just open it.”

Tyler does.

“Jamie,” he says, looking up at Jamie with tears already forming in both his eyes. “How...I, how did you get this?”

“I asked your mom if she happened to have an extra copy of the picture we took, well, that your aunt took the day you were born. I hope you like it.”

“Thank you so much. This is the best present that I’ve received.”

“Better than the chocolate key last year, eh?”

“Better.”

 

92\. _“I want you to be happy.”_ **March 4th, 2013**

“Come over, we need to talk.”

//

“What did you need to talk about?” Jamie asks as he toes his shoes off. “I got here as soon as I got your voicemail.”

“You remember what you told me last September?” Tyler says, wanting to get right into it. 

“Uh, yeah, why?”

“I’ve thought about it. I’ve thought about it a lot, actually, and yes, I _do_ feel the same way as you. I _am_ in love with you. I _want_ to do all those corny things that couples always do, like, hold hands, and make out on rainy days. I want to wake up next to you, and then swat you away when you try to kiss me because your morning breath is awful. Just, give me a chance, I’m telling the truth.”

“But...are you-”

“If you say are you sure _one more time_ , I will fucking punch you and I will never speak to you again. I swear.”

“I just want you to be happy, trust me. This is why I’m so hesitant. I want you to be _sure_ of this, I want you to really want this, okay? You’ve got to understand where I’m coming from. You’re my best friend and all I want for you in life is to be happy.”

“But you make me happy.”

“You make me happy, too.”

 

93\. _“I believe in you.”_ **January 20th, 2004**

“Trust me,” Jamie smiles. “I believe in you. You go into that audition room or whatever, and you’re going to fucking kill it. Go get that lead role.”

“I will. Wooooo.”

 

94\. _“You can do it.”_ **June 11th, 2010**

“Do you really think this is a good idea?” Tyler asks, biting his lip; they’re sitting in Jamie’s car outside the police station. “You really think they’ll do anything about it?”

“If they don’t,” Jamie begins. “I’ll do something about it myself.”

//

“Come on,” Jamie whispers. “You can do it.”

Tyler nods.

“Hi, I’m here to report a car that’s been following me for the past week and a half…”

 

95\. _“Good luck.”_ **May 4th, 2004**

“...but you’re going to be there,” Tyler says, growing visibly nervous by the second. “Right? I can’t do this if you’re not going to be in the audience.”

“I’m going to be there,” Jamie assures him. “And you’re going to kick ass. We’ll head over as soon as we finish getting ready, okay? _We will be there_.”

“Thank you.”

“Good luck, you’ll be great.”

 

96\. _“I brought you an umbrella.”_ **March 17th, 2010**

“Is everything okay?” Jamie asks, handing Tyler a dark green umbrella. “It started raining while you were in there so I went home and brought you an umbrella.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Tyler sighs. “Yeah, she’s going to be fine. She broke her leg, but she’s going to be fine.”

“Oh good. D’you want something to eat or something?”

“Please.”

 

97\. _“I’ll pick you up at the airport.”_ **April 15th, 2011**

“So, uh, I’m back at DFW,” Jamie says, making Tyler grin. 

“I’ll be there in thirty minutes,” Tyler says, hoping he doesn’t sound overly fond.

“Thanks.”

 

98\. _“Take a deep breath.”_ **December 15th, 2015**

“Dude,” Jordie says grinning, turning the ring in his hand. “Tyler is going to _flip_.”

“Yeah,” Jason joins in. “I think, now don’t tell him I told you this, but I think he’s been wanting you to ask him to marry you for a while now.”

Jordie nods his agreement. 

“Flip in a good way, right?” Jamie asks when Jordie hands him the ring back. “Wait, Tyler’s been _what_?”

“Well, yeah, I mean,” Jordie says, clasping Jamie on the shoulder. “He’s been dropping so many hints, you’d have to be dumb, or y’know, _you_ to not have noticed.”

//

Jordie and Jason are hiding out in the kitchen, working on dinner when Tyler comes in. He waves at them when they don’t come into the living room, where Jamie’s currently sitting.

“What’s up with those two?” Tyler asks, nodding towards the kitchen before kissing Jamie’s cheek. 

“Oh you know,” Jamie replies, doing his best to sound nonchalant, but instead managing to sound out of breath. “Just, uh, just being them, I guess.”

“Are you alright? You’re looking kind of pale.”

“Yeah, I am, uh, just peachy.”

“You sure?”

“Yes,” he says, staying silent for a few seconds, then shaking his head. “You know what? Actually no. I’m not okay. I’m nervous as all hell.”

“Okay. Try to calm down, and take a deep breath. Tell me, I’m here to listen.”

Tyler’s eyes widen the size of baseballs when Jamie gets down on one knee. It seems like he opens his mouth to say something, but then shuts it, the sound of his lips smacking against each other the only sound audible in the house. 

“You remember last year when I bought you that brown ring, and you thought I was proposing to you?” Jamie asks, and Tyler nods. “Well, I wasn’t asking you to marry me then...but, I am now. I know we haven’t been together all that long, but we’ve known each other basically our whole lives, and I know that I always want you in my life. Please, please, make me the happiest man on this earth and say yes, please?”

“Of course, yes, _fuck_ ,” Tyler replies, sounding a bit choked. “Please, yes.”

“Fucking _finally_!” Jason yells.

Jamie slides the ring on Tyler’s fingers, then stands up. He cups Tyler’s face and presses their lips together, just a small preview of what’s to come.

 

99\. _“Be careful.”_ **April 15th, 2011**

“...and then my mom took us to this park thing and I just,” Jamie explains. “Be careful.” he says, pulling Tyler over to keep him from being run over by a speeding car. “Do you not keep your eyes on the cars or what?”

“Ha ha,” Tyler laughs shirt and clipped. “As if you’re any better.”

“Most people would thank me that I saved their lives, you know.”

“Oh yes, thank you for saving me from being run over by a car. Your duty is truly appreciated.”

“Asshole.”

 

100\. _“I love you.”_ **September 8th, 2017**

“Are you ready to do this?” Jordie asks, helping Jamie fix his tie. 

“I’ve been ready since nineteen-ninety-fucking-nine.”

//

Jamie almost chokes on his breath when he sees Tyler walking up the aisle. It’s not that he’s _never seen_ Tyler in a suit before, it’s just that he’s never seen Tyler in a suit _this_ way. He can’t breathe; he hopes no one can notice.

“Hi,” Tyler says, sounding as breathless as Jamie feels.

“Hi.”

//

“And now the grooms will go on to say their vows,” Jason says - somehow he became an ordained minister and is officiating their ceremony. “Who wants to go first? Jamie?”

Jamie nods and begins to speak. “Tyler, we met when you were just three hours old, and I was three years old. I thought _man, he’s cute, I hope we get to become best friends_. I knew from day one that I wanted to become your best friend, and thankfully, I’ve achieved that goal. And now, with the wise words of Andrew McMahon, I say this to you: through all the things my eyes have seen, the best by far is you. For all the places I have been, I’m no place without you. For all the things my hands have held, the best by far is _you_. So hold my hand loser, we’re using the buddy system for the rest of our lives.”

A rumble of laughter erupts from friends and family.

“That’s going to be tough to beat, Jamison,” Tyler smiles, so wide it must hurt, Jamie thinks. “Okay, here we go: do you remember when I told you that I liked your laugh? Well, that’s where it all began for me. I’ve spent so long trying to figure out where exactly home was, and now that I think about it, maybe home are just two arms that’ll hold you when you’re at your worst, two eyes that will look at you when you’re not looking your best, and two lips that’ll kiss you when you’re not well,” he pauses and takes a deep breath before continuing. “I promise Jamie, _I swear to you_ that I will love you the way I’ve always wanted to be loved.”

“Shit,” Jason says, wiping his clearly dampened eyes. “You may now kiss each other.”

//

“I love you,” Tyler says, pressing kisses along Jamie’s cheeks and nose. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> once again here is a **[link to the awesome mix](http://8tracks.com/lightynight/you-re-just-another-part-of-me)** that [**leaveamessageatthebeep** (on tumblr)](http://leaveamessageatthebeep.tumblr.com/) made for this fic!
> 
> \--
> 
> note for # **30** : from chapter two in Jacquelyn Mitchard’s [_The Most Wanted_](http://www.amazon.com/The-Most-Wanted-Jacquelyn-Mitchard/dp/0451196856).
> 
> note for # **46** : this is based on the method of quiz taking that my english 1301 professor has - even though I didn’t detail much of it; it seemed appropriate. (also on the terms of Tyler’s graduation, this totally isn’t how things work in america, at least in Dallas, which is where I went/go to school. although, you _can_ really graduate high school in three years instead of four by a method that is unbeknownst to me, cos I graduated in ‘14 and it took me four years to do so).
> 
> note for # **54** : the restaurant they go to is [Five Sixty by Wolfgang Puck](http://www.wolfgangpuck.com/restaurants/fine-dining/3917), located in the [Reunion Tower](http://www.reuniontower.com/) in Downtown Dallas, Texas. now I don’t know how much exactly it would cost to eat there but considering it’s downtown, I imagine it must be expensive (well at least working-class people such as myself).
> 
> note for # **69** : as far as I know Cecilia’s Machine is a completely fictional band that I made for the sole purpose of this piece.
> 
> note for # **83** : yes, the song used for Tyler’s ringtone is Fall Out Boy’s _27_. I just thought the opening lines ( _if home is where the heart is, then we’re all just fucked_ ) seemed appropriate for the way Jamie feels about Tyler (cos Tyler’s his best friend and they’ve known each other basically their whole lives).
> 
> note for # **100** : yes, I used lyrics from the song _Cecilia And The Satellite_ by Andrew McMahon. I’m terrible cos I couldn’t help myself and I just had to use them. I am sorry. post on which Jamie’s vows were based on can be found [here](http://richxe.tumblr.com/post/123057505873/hold-my-fucking-hand-loser-were-using-the-buddy). [here](http://richxe.tumblr.com/post/125830293673/you-smiled-to-me-and-i-thought-damn-im-fucking) and [here](http://richxe.tumblr.com/post/125771800848/maybe-home-is-nothing-but-two-arms-holding-you) and [here](http://richxe.tumblr.com/post/123783345883/i-will-love-you-the-exact-way-i-always-wanted-to) are the posts on which I based part of Tyler’s vows.
> 
> \--
> 
> the post on which I based this fic on can be found [here](http://richxe.tumblr.com/post/123302133218/one-hundred-ways-to-say-i-love-you). my askbox is always open for any suggestions or other comments that y’all may have over at [richxe](http://richxe.tumblr.com/) on tumblr.
> 
> thank y’all so much for reading!!


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